Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 8,178 Shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. $LOW

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) by 1.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 608,373 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock after selling 8,178 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lowe’s Companies were worth $152,890,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Maj Invest Holding A S lifted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 15.7% during the third quarter. Maj Invest Holding A S now owns 802,990 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $201,801,000 after purchasing an additional 108,813 shares during the last quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $558,000. Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lowe’s Companies by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 826,356 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $183,344,000 after buying an additional 5,820 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Lowe’s Companies by 22.0% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 497,628 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock worth $110,409,000 after buying an additional 89,839 shares during the period. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN grew its stake in Lowe’s Companies by 12.5% in the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 11,794 shares of the home improvement retailer’s stock valued at $2,617,000 after buying an additional 1,315 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.06% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lowe’s Companies

In other news, CEO Marvin R. Ellison sold 18,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $261.17, for a total transaction of $4,701,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 231,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,341,500.31. This represents a 7.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LOW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Gordon Haskett raised Lowe’s Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $325.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lowe’s Companies in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wolfe Research reduced their target price on Lowe’s Companies from $308.00 to $285.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Lowe’s Companies from $260.00 to $252.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, HSBC cut their price objective on shares of Lowe’s Companies from $285.00 to $263.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $284.81.

Lowe’s Companies Stock Up 0.9%

LOW opened at $269.37 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $254.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $248.46. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $206.38 and a 52 week high of $281.36. The stock has a market cap of $151.10 billion, a PE ratio of 22.34, a P/E/G ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 0.97.

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 26th. The home improvement retailer reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.09. Lowe’s Companies had a net margin of 8.05% and a negative return on equity of 55.86%. The company had revenue of $20.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.88 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. will post 11.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Lowe’s Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 4th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 21st will be issued a $1.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 21st. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. Lowe’s Companies’s payout ratio is currently 39.80%.

About Lowe’s Companies

Lowe’s Companies, Inc is a leading home improvement retailer that operates large-format stores and digital channels serving both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional contractors. The company offers a broad assortment of products including building materials, lumber, appliances, tools and hardware, plumbing and electrical supplies, paint, flooring, kitchen and bath fixtures, outdoor and garden products, and home decor. Lowe’s also provides a range of services such as installation, home improvement financing, tool and equipment rental, and contractor-focused sales programs.

Operations are centered on a nationwide brick-and-mortar store network supported by distribution centers and an e-commerce platform that enables online ordering, delivery and in-store pickup.